Category Archives: Popular (and unpopular) culture

What books/TV/movies/podcasts did you like in 2019?

Posted on December 29, 2019 by Ampersand

This thread is for talking about whatever movies/TV/books you enjoyed (or hated, or just want to mention) in 2019. So please use the comments for that! (I haven’t seen the new Star Wars yet, but I’m planning to see it … Continue reading →

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On Christian Marclay’s “Rriippp” And Swiping From Comics

Posted on May 28, 2017 by Ampersand

A page from the first issue of a comic book called O.M.A.C.. The credits for that issue: Okay, now here’s a print by a very famous artist named Christian Marclay. (You may have heard of Marclay’s film “The Clock,” which … Continue reading →

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Brief note on Gal Gadot’s Zionism and the Wonder Woman movie

Posted on May 26, 2017 by Ampersand

I don’t care about Gal Godot’s military service or her political views. If Wonder Woman is a good movie, then it’s a good movie. I don’t want a society in which we automatically boycott people because they’ve taken the other … Continue reading →

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Train to Busan and other movies

Posted on August 10, 2016 by Ampersand

I saw the Korean zombie movie Train to Busan last night – SO good! This movie has been breaking records since it opened three weeks ago, and I can understand why – it’s unpretentious genre excitement, but exceptionally well done. … Continue reading →

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On being fat and liking creators who have done anti-fat material

Posted on July 28, 2016 by Ampersand

I love some of Tina Fey’s work. But she tells fat jokes, including a sketch where she appeared in a fat suit. I love The Simpsons, but soooo many fat jokes. By far my favorite MCU work is Jessica Jones, … Continue reading →

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My Problem With Tarantino’s “The Hateful Eight” (Spoilers)

Posted on February 3, 2016 by Ampersand

I saw “The Hateful Eight” and enjoyed it until the ending. Dana Stevens gets at what bugged me: I can say no more without giving away several major twists, but let’s just say that symbolic retribution—a gift Tarantino loves to … Continue reading →

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Al Hirschfeld’s “Late Late Very Late Show” – How Many Can We Identify?

Posted on January 1, 2016 by Ampersand

A game: I thought it might be fun to see how many people from this 1955 Al Hirschfeld drawing we could collectively identify. Sorry for the less-than-stellar quality image; I took this picture with my cell phone. It’s on the … Continue reading →

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Viewers With Prosopagnosia Enjoy TV and Movies and Plays and Comics With Diverse Casts

Posted on December 28, 2015 by Ampersand

Or, at least, I do. I’ve got prosopagnosia, aka face blindness.1 I’ve recently started watching “Arrow,” which is a TV show about a bunch of muscular, thirtyish, conventionally handsome, mostly white men plus a few really thin, twentyish, conventionally pretty … Continue reading →

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Jessica Jones Discussion Thread (Warning, spoilers)

Posted on December 5, 2015 by Ampersand

(Here there be spoilers.) I really liked “Jessica Jones,” the new Marvel show (available in 13 streaming episodes on Netflix). Is this the most feminist interpretation of a superhero ever done? It just might be, both for having tons of … Continue reading →

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All the movies watched by Presidents Carter and Reagan

Posted on September 15, 2015 by Ampersand

Don’t know why I find this so interesting, but I do, so I might as well share it with you folks. Every Single Movie That Jimmy Carter Watched at the White House And FILMS PRESIDENT AND MRS. REAGAN VIEWED (Chronologically … Continue reading →

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